Incentive
by Politics.and.Prose
Summary: Lois and Chloe have a talk just hours after Oliver and Clark go missing. Post Season 9. Spoilers for finale.


Chloe wasn't sure who arrived first, her or Lois, but she wasn't at all surprised that they both ended up in the same place. The apartment above the Talon was theirs both in spirit and in lease. Even though neither of them had spent much time there in the last year it was still home.

Well, it was whatever home was without their respective significant others.

"How long have you known?" Lois asked softly, finally breaking the hour-long silence that had settled between them.

"Known about what?" Chloe asked in the same tone of voice.

The girls were both sitting on the couch dressed in mismatched sweats and t-shirts. Lois held a pint of ice cream and Chloe cupped her hands around an oversized cup of black coffee. She needed to stay awake. As long as she was awake she was able to continue thinking of ways to find Ollie, to figure out who had him, to form a plan to get him back.

"Clark." When Chloe opened her mouth to protest, or maybe to ask what Lois was talking about, her cousin effectively cut her off. "Don't even think about it. I know you know. Just tell me."

"Since before you moved here," Chloe admitted, her head down, eyes staring into the cup.

"And you didn't tell me?" Lois demanded.

"Not my secret to tell," she shrugged.

Her eyes moved over to the clock on the wall. Ten hours. That's how long it had been since she had any contact with Oliver. It seemed like time was slowing down now and she couldn't decide if it was better that way or not. On the one hand, it just made it seem like he was missing for much longer. On the other hand, with time slowing down it gave the illusion that she had more time to figure out where he was.

"Oliver told me he loved me," she whispered after a few moments of both of them being lost in their thoughts.

"Yeah?" Lois asked with a small smile. "That's good. What did you say?" When Chloe didn't answer immediately, the brunette got amped up. "Oh my God! You didn't answer him, did you? You just …" she let out a classic Lois Lane agitated sigh. "Of course the first time Ollie opens himself up to someone and admits he's in love he does it to the most emotionally constipated woman in the Midwest!" She put the ice cream down on the table and moved so she was facing Chloe head on. "I can't believe you didn't say anything back. God, Chlo, he's been kidnapped … is probably being tortured …" Chloe flinched but Lois kept right on, "and all he's thinking about is how he admitted he loved you and you're too emotionally stunted to answer him!"

"I did answer him!" Chloe yelled back. "I told him I loved him and I don't know if he heard me! All he did was tell me that it wasn't the Kandorians – Clark's people – and the radio went dead. I mean, I paused. Who does that? Seriously, Oliver tells me he loved me and I paused. It was only a couple of seconds but it was long enough! What if he didn't hear me? What if he …" she choked back a sob. "What of he dies thinking I don't love him because I paused for three seconds?"

"Chloe …"

"No, see, this is exactly why I wanted no strings. So that stuff like this wouldn't happen. So that I couldn't lose someone again," Chloe continued. "I mean, seriously. How could I have done that? So stupid," she said with a forced laugh as she wiped away her tears. "I loved Jimmy and I got him killed."

"Chloe," Lois tried to interject.

"And then Ollie. Of course I love him!" the blonde continued as if her cousin hadn't spoken. "How could I not? And then I send him out there and what happens? He gets taken … because of me." Chloe took a deep breath and lifted her eyes to meet Lois'. "What if he never comes back?" She asked in a tearful whisper. "What if I never get to tell him I love him again?"

"You will," Lois whispered vehemently. "I swear, Chloe, you'll get to see him again even if I have to drag his ass back myself. And once we find Clark he can help too. Hell," she said in a choked voice, ignoring the tears that were now coursing down her cheeks, "he's the Blur! He – he can do anything."

Chloe smiled sadly and moved to place her now-cold coffee on the table beside Lois' melting ice cream. "We'll find them," she whispered as she embraced her cousin.

"There really is no other option," the brunettes concurred as she returned the hug. "They can't get away with disappearing on us."

Chloe took a deep breath then stood. She wiped the remainder of her tears from her cheeks and turned to look down on Lois. "Well then let's go. Get dressed. We're going to the Watchtower."

Lois pulled a confused face and stared up at Chloe. "… the hell is that?" she asked.

"Home," came a familiar voice from the doorway.

"AC?" Lois asked as she shifted in her seat to look at him. And a young girl. She arched a brow.

"Cyborg is at the Tower already and the Martian searching for the Blur. Hawkman and Impulse are our eyes and ears in the sky and on the ground. Canary is at the earth station looking for clues and making sure the panels weren't damaged so we can get the satellite back up and running," the young girl said.

"A little young for you, isn't she, AC?" Lois asked, completely ignoring the small blonde.

"She's a part of the team," Chloe said as she embraced Courtney. "Is everyone else okay?"

"We'll be better when we get you over to Watchtower and get our leaders back," AC said. "Well, present company aside, of course."

"Wait … leader? Chloe?" Lois asked, confused.

Chloe turned to her cousin and took a deep breath, preparing herself for the inevitable fallout of what she was about to say. "Okay, Lo. I need to give you the Cliffs Notes version now but I swear I will explain it all later. Clark is the Blur and Ollie is Green Arrow, as you already know, and they are the leaders of our merry band of vigilantes. AC is Aquaman …"

"Explains the swimming …"

"And we have a bigger team. Victor is Cyborg and Bart is Impulse. Courtney here is Star Girl and Dinah Lance is Black Canary."

"Wait, the crazy ninja lady from however long ago is on our side?"

"Yes," Chloe continued without skipping a beat. "Detective Jones is the Martian Manhunter and Carter Hall is Hawkman. And I'm … well … they call me Watchtower. And I think there are more but I haven't met them yet."

"You will," Courtney said. "Hal Jordan is with Victor at Watchtower. He's Allan Scott's protégé," she smiled. "He calls himself Green Lantern."

"So now if you ladies would just get dressed, we can find Clark and Oliver and then figure this whole mess out."

"On it," Lois and Chloe said at the same time as they headed for the bedroom.

"You are so giving me the full story after we get the guys back," Lois muttered testily to Chloe.

"Promise, Lo," Chloe sighed as she grabbed some clothes and headed into the bathroom.

**So – this is meant to be a one-shot but I could be persuaded to turn it into a multi-chapter fic.**

**Oh, and this is my first Smallville. Any good?**


End file.
